9th Avenue Food Festival 2009

Here we go again

"March Watch"
Oil on canvas
32 x 40 inches

My favorite street fair is happening this week-end and I'll be walking up and down the avenue, camera in hand. I try not to miss this annual event - it has proven to be a wonderful place for ideas and I've done many paintings over the years of 9th Avenue and the festival.

This painting is unusual in that I took several photos of people in their windows and created one collage painting. Folks would be looking out their windows or sitting on their fire escapes during this festival in the 70's and 80's but it is not a common sight anymore. Perhaps this is due to the gentrification that 9th Avenue has experienced, the newer glass-fronted building facades, or a passing of the older residents to whom sitting in one's window and checking out the street action was a common sight.

I do sometimes stop and choose something to eat - this is, after all a food festival. If you're a chow hound this festival is great way to sample foods from all over the world. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and this year's festival will be as great as the many I've attended in years past.

Gallery Hopping

Madison Avenue and Chelsea - two shows of note


Last week I attended the opening reception at the George Billis Gallery in Chelsea for artist Stephen Magsig. This Detroit-based realist painter likes to paint buildings, and I always like to see how other artists handle similar subject matter to my own. His daily painting blog, "Postcards from Detroit" is worth checking out, small daily paintings of his Detroit neighborhood. Having followed Stephen's work online it was a treat to see the paintings up-close and to meet the artist in person. This show is up through May 23rd, so if you're in Chelsea, stop in and have a look.




Last night I visited the reception for "Semi-Abstracts", paintings of artist Roberta Crown at the Ezair Gallery on Madison Avenue. Roberta's work is very different from my own in style - her's has a more "Kandinsky" feel, loose brushwork, lots of color and energy. We've known each other since the 1980's and it was very nice to see Roberta's paintings on display in this intimate, well-lit gallery space. This show is up through May 31st.

As an artist I know only too well how much work goes into preparing for an exhibition and it is always gratifying when people come out to see the work. I try to make it to the shows of artists that I know and feel strongly that it is very important to support one's fellow artists. Congrats to both Stephen and Roberta!

Music and Art

Pete Seeger's 90th Hootenanny at the Garden

Photograph of the Clearwater Fundraiser at the Garden

Last night I was sitting in Madison Square Garden soaking up the good music and good vibes celebrating the grand old man of folk music, Pete Seeger, 90 years young. It was also a fundraiser for the Clearwater Revival, a worthy cause. What a great concert!

It got me to thinking about how important music is to my painting. As soon as I come into the studio the first thing I do is to turn on the radio or put a CD on. Music sets the mood of the day and is influenced by what I'm working on, the light that day and how I'm feeling. A soundtrack accompanies each and every painting I've ever done.

As an old folkie (the first album I ever bought was Joan Baez In Concert Vol. II) I was beyond thrilled to hear some of my favorite performers serenading Pete. Joan was there, and it's hard to believe that it has been 50 years since she first burst onto the music scene! What a line-up it was. Of course, one of the high points for this Springsteen fan was to hear Bruce describing Seeger's work and legacy, and then singing "The Ghost of Tom Joad".


Photograph, Bruce at the Seeger Concert

Since this is a painting blog after all, I'll share a painting with you. "Rockin' at the Garden" is a personal favorite of mine and is hanging in my home.

Having attended many memorable concerts at the Garden over the years I have to say that the Pete Seeger 90th Birthday Celebration is one that ranks right up there, it was an incredible night.


"Rockin' at the Garden"
Oil on canvas
24 x 30 inches

The Puck Building

Houston and Lafayette's gem


"The Puck Building"
Oil on canvas
30x24 inches
Sold

The Bowery Boys New York City History blog is a favorite of mine and today's edition features a story on the wonderful Puck Building on Houston and Lafayette. I've painted this site several times over the years. Here are some examples. The impish gold Puck figure is over the main doorway on Lafayette Street as well as on the eastern corner of the building. The ornate ironwork above the doorways are intricate and lovely. When I was a child, I visited the Puck building on a school trip when the building was primarily a printing company. One of my schoolmate's Dad's worked there at the time.


"Shutters"
Oil on canvas
40 x 28 inches

Here is view of the side of the building, south of Houston. Lots of pink shutters line the windows facing south and when they are opened at different angles it makes for an interesting and abstract scene. I was walking north on Lafayette Street and when these shutters caught my eye I just knew there was a painting waiting to be done. I really enjoyed working on this piece.





"Small Puck Building"
Oil on canvas
16 x 12 inches

And here is one more, a smaller, more intimate view of the south side of the building. If you're walking around downtown be sure to take a look at this New York City architectural gem.

A Rainy April Day in NYC

Rain, rain go away...

"The Blue Umbrella"
Oil on canvas panel
4 x 5 inches

A rainy Monday and I've been spending most of the day in front of the computer instead of in front of the easel. Thought I'd share this rainy day themed painting with you. A small study on a canvas panel, this image is of a figure standing under a blue umbrella reading the menu in a Chinese restaurant's window on Sixth Avenue. Some nice reflections of the passing traffic in the window.

Miro's "New York Frame of Mind"

Check out the show!

Photo of Miro Sinovcic with
"Late Night Rain"

One of the benefits of having this blog has been the other artists I have met online who share my love of New York and often use it as their muse for their own work. Last night I had the pleasure of meeting in person Miro Sinovcic at the opening reception of his show of recent paintings in midtown Manhattan. The large scale canvases were just bursting with color and energy, with subjects such as the Times Square area and Central Park portrayed, among others. The neutral walls of the large corporate lobby space showed off the work very well. Miro's brushwork is very different from my own, with loosely painted bright daubs of color built up to create the image. Impressionistic, somewhat abstract yet very real at the same time.

If you are in the area, check out this wonderful exhibit, located at Show Walls, lobby of 1133 6th Avenue. The show is up through mid-May. For a peek at the paintings in the exhibit click here to visit Miro's blog.

In Your Easter Bonnet

Ah, the colors of spring


"In Your Easter Bonnet"
Oil on canvas
36 x 24 inches

The spring holiday season is upon us so today I'm sharing a painting of the Metropolitan Life Tower, lit up in hues of pink, yellow and green. When I first saw the building I immediately thought of the tower donning it's Easter bonnet. I was delighted when several years ago the usually white lights were replaced by really bright colors. This multi-color light display had me grabbing my camera and trying to get some good night photos from which to do a painting, and here is the result. Wishing all who observe the holidays a healthy and happy Easter and Passover.